WOMEN and Downing Street staffers on low salaries are reportedly being disproportionately hit by fines over law-breaking in the Prime Minister’s office during lockdown.
Some 126 fines have been dished out by the Metropolitan Police to Downing Street staff, understood to be the most fined workplace in Britain, but the impact is being felt more by junior staff and especially women, according to ITV.
A source told the channel’s political editor Robert Peston “very junior” staff such as diary managers were being fined for events where “their males bosses…seem to have got away no problem”.
In Downing Street there is a sense of injustice and considerable upset that the 126 Partygate fines have been levied disproportionately on women and junior officials. One source said: “the majority of [those fined] are very junior diary managers etc on 24k-ish and these fines…
— Robert Peston (@Peston) May 20, 2022
The police have concluded their investigations into rule-breaking at No.10 during lockdown, when indoor socialising was banned.
Boris Johnson has escaped with just one fine for his birthday party thrown by wife Carrie Johnson in 2020.
He is now awaiting the publication of Sue Gray’s final report into the scandal which is expected to shine greater light on the extent of boozing and partying in Downing Street during lockdown.
The source told Peston: “The majority of [those fined] are very junior diary managers etc on 24k-ish and these fine are really stacking up for them.
“Typically they are getting fined for events they were at with their males bosses who seem to have got away no problem.
“Pretty clear also that people who bothered lawyering up [like the PM] are fine. There is a lot of very angry and upset people.”
Gray’s report is expected to “hang responsibility” for Covid rule-breaking on more senior Downing Street staff, who are reported to have presided over a culture of drinking and recklessness while the country was in lockdown.
Peston added: “The big question is whether her report corrects the perceived unfairness of the distribution of fines and identifies who at the top was to blame.
“The PM will have an anxious weekend as he waits to read what Gray says about his role in the creation of the compromised culture at the top of Whitehall and government.”
Johnson has insisted he will not attempt to block the publication of names in Gray’s report.
It is expected to be published next week.
